Cougars roar back to oust Canfield

Canfield vs Lake

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Three turnovers in the third quarter propelled Mentor Lake Catholic.

By TOM WILLIAMS

VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF

TWINSBURG — After three turnovers that helped Mentor Lake Catholic score the first 17 points of a wild second half, the Canfield High football team rallied to throw a fourth-quarter scare into the top-seeded Cougars.

But second-half touchdowns by Kyle Vaclav (25-yard run) and Blake Jackson (76-yard pass from Vaclav) weren’t enough as fourth-seeded Canfield fell to top-seeded Lake Catholic, 31-24, Friday at Twinsburg High Tiger Stadium.

“Our guys will play for 48 minutes, that’s what we love about them,” Canfield coach Mike Pavlansky said moments after Vaclav’s final four passes fell incomplete in the Cardinals’ desperation push in the last minute. “There is no quit in them.

“Obviously, you can’t turn the ball over two times against a great team like this and give them 10 points,” Pavlansky said. “Certainly, that was the difference in the ballgame.”

The Cardinals (10-2) dominated the first half, jumping out to a 10-0 lead before the Cougars quarterback Jerrod Ronyak scored 47 seconds before halftime.

Asked about Canfield’s strong start, Ronyak said, “They just came out and punched us in the face. We weren’t ready for it. We weren’t awake yet.”

Lake Catholic coach Mike Bell said, “You’ve got to give Canfield credit — they came out ready to play. They were keeping us on our toes defensively.”

Pavlansky wasn’t surprised.

“We’ve got a pretty good team,” Pavlansky said. “Our guys up front believe. They came to play.

Bell said the Ronyak’s first touchdown provided momentum.

“We knew our defense would have to come up big and they did that with a couple of turnovers.”

The start of the third quarter was a disaster for the Cardinals. Quarterback Brett Cooper was intercepted by Tommy Micahls and injured his knee during the 39-yard return.

That pickoff led to Kresimir Ivkovic’s 32-yard field goal that tied the game.

Canfield fumbled the ensuing kickoff at the Canfield 18. Three plays later, Ronyak hit Zach Cvelbar for a 17-yard touchdown.

Canfield’s next punt didn’t cross midfield, setting up Ronyak’s 41-yard touchdown that gave the Cougars a 24-10 advantage.

Despite another fumble, the Cardinals didn’t fold.

“That’s the character of our team,” senior fullback/linebacker Donnie Allison said. “We’ve been down may times before and we always keep fighting until the end. We’ve been fighting all our lives and this was no different.”

Late in the third quarter, Cardinals defensive back Frank Babbaro recovered Cvelbar’s fumble in Cougars territory.

That reversal set up Vaclav’s 25-yard touchdown run that reduced the Lake Catholic lead to 24-16.

In the fourth quarter, the Cougars faced first-and-25 after two penalties. Ronyak scrambled for a 41-yard pickup that led to his 3-yard touchdown and a 15-point edge.

“We had a pass play called and the coaches told me escape route was right up the middle because they were coming from the outsides,” Ronyak said. “No one was open. I looked up the middle and it looked like the parting of the Red Sea.”

Ronyak completed 11 of 18 passes for 130 yards and rushed 14 times for 121 yards.

Pavlansky called Ronyak’s play “tremendous. He’s the best quarterback we faced all year long, not just throwing the ball but running the ball.

“He’s a big, strong physical runner and we let him escape a few times when we thought we had him in pretty good down-and-distance situations,” Pavlansky said.

With Cooper sidelined, Vaclav took over at quarterback.

“He did a great job,” Pavlansky said. “He’s our playmaker and we had to get the ball into his hands as many ways as possible. he kept plays alive for us — he’s a special player.”

Vaclav rushed 11 times for 67 yards and completed 6 of 11 passes for 111 yards.

In the first quarter, Cooper scored the Cardinals’ first touchdown on a 6-yard run up the middle.

On the next offensive play, Vince Gelonese intercepted Ronyak’s pass at the Lake Catholic 25. That play set up Billy Fisher’s 22-yard field goal.

williams@vindy.com